VIENNA — OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media, Dunja Mijatovic, today expressed concern regarding reports that Armenia’s Special Investigative Service launched a criminal case against Kristine Khanumian, editor of Ilur.am news portal, on charges of deliberate failure to comply with a court order.

The report implicated the then police chief of Armenia’s Shirak province in a violent attack on two young men. The Special Investigative Service (SIS) ordered Ilur.am as well as the independent newspaper “Hraparak” to disclose their anonymous sources, saying that is necessary for solving the case.

Both publications refused to comply with the order backed by Armenian courts. Earlier this week, Khanumian was formally charged under an article of the Armenian Criminal Code carrying heavy fines and up to two years in prison.

“Members of the media should not be held liable for publishing or disseminating information of public interest,” Mijatovic wrote in a letter today to Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian. “Unless information is legitimately classified as secret on the grounds of precisely defined national security concerns or protection of other overriding interests, the state should ensure full protection against any legal or administrative sanctions related to disclosure of the identity of journalists’ sources.

“This principle is one of the basic requirements for the existence of independent journalism and free media,” Mijatovic said.

Mijatovic expressed hope that law enforcement authorities would dismiss the case against Khanumian.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Sign Up for Our Newsletters

Get notified of the latest updates from MassisPost.

You May Also Like

The 100 Years, 100 Facts Project Charges Ahead in Turkish, Spanish, French, Portuguese, and Russian

The 100 Years, 100 Facts Project has launched the Turkish version of…

Armenia’s Head Coach Bernard Challande Resigns

YEREVAN — Chairman of the Football Federation of Armenia Ruben Hayrapetyan has…

MIT Global Teaching Labs Strive to Create a Culture of Learning in Armenia

YEREVAN — On July 17, 2015, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT),…

WCIT 2019 Announces Opening Speakers

YEREVAN — The World Congress on Information Technology 2019 (WCIT 2019) organizing…